Grandma's Stuffed Pepper Recipe

I had no idea the story about the coyote howling when I put my crockpot outside during the wee hours would draw interest in my stuffed pepper recipe. I suppose if it got the coyote howling, it could work the same for friends or family.

Seriously, it is a good recipe. I learned it by watching my grandmother upon many occasions. She made it look like an art. However, she didn't have any specific measurements. As I struggled through the intuitive method, I eventually learned that these are veritably fail proof:

Use one pound each of ground beef, and bulk sausage (sausage optional, or use ground turkey, or all three).

Add one medium onion - chopped.

Throw in an egg or two. The more egg, the firmer the end product will be.

Add a little garlic; salt and pepper to taste.

Use bell peppers or variety peppers of your choice.

Even banana peppers work out well. If you use hot banana, be prepared with a sour cream topping to cool down the heat when you serve them. Bell peppers come together faster. Banana peppers take a bit of patience since they are smaller.

After these ingredients are in the mixing bowl, sprinkle the rice on the top of the meat. This is the part I do by visual estimation, because I never did know a measurement. (You know how grandmothers are with recipes from intuition) Just drizzle the rice over the top of the meat mixture till the meat is barely visible. Mix together by hand. If using brown rice, a smaller amount is better, so leave more of the meat mixture visible.

V-8 juice makes a nice broth. Add chunks of ham, or smoked ham hocks for a hardy flavor.

Be creative with the broth ingredients - wine enhances the flavor a lot. The broth should completely cover the peppers.

During garden season, I use a juicer, and go creative with fresh tomatoes, carrots, a few herbs like parsley, basil, oregano, and coriander. Use your imagination. This recipe is virtually foolproof.

The meat mixture can be frozen as is, or it can be stuffed into the peppers first. They can be stored with the broth or not. Freeze this inexpensive meal, and cook it in the crock pot on an extra busy day. If using the traditional stove top method, use medium heat and simmer the stuffed peppers for 2 - 3 hours.